Last May, Lois Lerner invoked the Fifth during hearings on the Internal Revenue Service. In September, she retired. And just last month, she invoked the Fifth a second time — making clear she has no intention of answering Congress’ questions.
This week, two committees of Congress will turn up the heat.
The House Ways and Means Committee will do so today by sending a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder recommending the Justice Department file criminal charges against Lerner.
The accusations include violating the constitutional rights of American taxpayers by singling out conservative groups for special treatment, making misleading statements to a Treasury investigator and mishandling private taxpayer information.
On Thursday, the Oversight and Government Reform Committee will vote to hold Lerner in contempt for her refusal to answer its questions. If the vote passes, as it’s expected to do, it will go to the full House. If the House holds Lerner in contempt, it will direct the local US attorney to refer the matter to a grand jury for action.
In the meantime, a new report from this same committee says the Democratic talking point that the IRS targeted liberal as well as conservative organizations is simply not true. It argues no liberal or progressive groups were specifically targeted.
It’s too early to say whether any of this will achieve what Americans are really after: holding the woman who headed the IRS division at the heart of this scandal accountable to the people’s elected representatives. Lerner may still refuse. But the price for her refusal has just gone up.